


Building a New Family

by argylemikewheeler



Series: Tumblr Re-posts [57]
Category: Stranger Things (TV 2016)
Genre: Comfort, Coming Out, Gen, Good Babysitter Steve Harrington
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-04-09
Updated: 2019-04-09
Packaged: 2020-01-07 05:21:26
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,000
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18403943
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/argylemikewheeler/pseuds/argylemikewheeler
Summary: Prompt: Imagine Steve's coming out to the kids, like obviously Nancy and Jonathon already know, they're his best friends, and this kids are obviously all accepting of Steve and they just all wanna know when he's gonna get a boyfriend.





	Building a New Family

Steve’s freaking out. He’s  _really_ freaking out. Being honest, Steve Harrington has done so stupid fucking shit and has probably warranted a prescription for an anti-anxiety or something by this point. But this–  _this fucking decision_ – was the dumbest thing he’s ever done. Or at least, will be after he  _does it_.

“Steve, why do you look like you’re going to throw up?” Jonathan asks, poking his banana split with his spoon.

“Because, Johnny, I  _am_.” Steve mutters, craning his neck to see if the kids are coming yet.

“They’re fourteen year olds.” Nancy tries to hide her laugh in a cough.

“Please don’t throw up.” Jonathan adds. “Not on my ice cream.”

“Gee, thanks. Love you too.” Steve snaps with a tisk of his tongue.

“Steve, you’re coming out to a bunch of middle schoolers. This isn’t a trial.” Nancy says, trying to diffuse their glaring. “You do know like, two of them are probably gay. Like, statistically.”

“Yeah, well they got one big ol’ gay right fucking here, scooping them ice cream.  _Statistically_.” Steve begins to chew his bottom lip. “Oh my god, they probably already figured it out. They stood me up.”

Jonathan doesn’t acknowledge Steve’s idiotic logic. “Why again are you having them meet you at an ice cream parlor? You  _work_ here.”

“Cheap ice cream. I can bribe them.” Steve answers without thought. “And it’s in public, so they won’t make a scene if things go sour.”

“Steve,” Nancy says, taking his hand. Jonathan takes the other and it’s annoyingly calming. “they aren’t your parents. They’re good kids. They’re going to be okay with it.”

“I really hope so– Oh  _fuck_  here they are.” Steve pulls his hands away and tries to dry his palms on his jeans.

Max walks in with her arms around Lucas and Dustin. Her smile is an echo of a memory Steve hasn’t had in a while. Lucas laughs and Dustin is cackling from the joke Steve was just out of reach of. Behind her, El skips into the parlor with Will, who is walking. Definitely walking. He looks sure to put both feet down evenly, alerting everyone he is  _walking_. Steve knows that look– no, he wouldn’t wish that on anyone. Steve looks away and spots Mike coming in last. He spots his sister and waves at her, locating Steve in the next moment.

“I’m gonna hurl. Oh my god.”

“Why are you doing this again?” Jonathan asks, reaching for his hand again. He’d started holding Steve’s hand after Steve had come out. Steve had confessed his own disgust with himself, with how much he was  _afraid_  to touch Jonathan in passing or even play a sport because he didn’t want to make anyone feel invaded or uncomfortable. Jonathan told him he was never bothered and began grabbing his hand when he wanted Steve to know he’s listening. Steve doesn’t hate it.

“I don’t want them to be scared like me. The news is getting… worse and I want them to have someone happy– and healthy– to look up to if they are… how they are.” Steve says, squeezing Jonathan’s hand.

“You’re a really good friend to them, Steve.” Nancy smiles as she slides out of the booth. She kisses him on the cheek and fixes his hair; he hadn’t washed it in two days. Hadn’t slept properly longer.

“Good luck. Come get us when it’s all over.” Jonathan pats Steve on the shoulder as they walk away and leave the booth open for the kids.

“Hey Steve!” Dustin slides in beside him, scooting him against the wall. “What’s new?”

“Nothing really.” Still the same Steve, unfortunately. Now just self-aware. “How’s your summer?”

“Hot.” El says– she wasn’t going by Jane anymore, he thinks– thudding her elbows on the table as she sits. Mike slides in next to her and Will beside him. Max pulls up a chair to the end of the table as Lucas finishes off the bench with Steve and Dustin. “I want ice cream.”

“I’ll get you some. What flavor?” Max says, the easiest to stand.

“No. No I’ll get everyone ice cream.” Steve says, waving her back down to her seat. “I’ll use my employee discount and everything. I just want to... I want to talk to you guys for a second. If that’s okay.” He feels his heart try to stop. Not skip a beat, not sink to his stomach or jump to his throat. No, it tries to come to a halt and  _kill him_.

“What’s wrong?”

“Are you going far away for college!” Max cries, gripping at the table edge. “I thought you said that you were going locally! We need you here!”

“I am, I still am.” Steve soothes. “It has nothing to do with college.”

“Then what? What else do you do with your time other than scoop ice cream and bitch about going to college?” Dustin says.

“Hey, language.” Steve says firmly. “And I do plenty of other things.”

“Yeah, you sit in my living room and bitch to Nancy.” Mike laughs.

“Hey!  _Language_!”

“So far we haven’t told a lie.” Lucas reaches behind Dustin to playfully shove Steve. “But, for real, what’s wrong? You typically don’t call us in like this.”

“I feel like I’m at a business meeting.” Will notes, folding his hands on the tabletop. Mike laughs and does the same, as does El. “Mr. Harrington, please, state your business.”

This is the moment, Steve knows it. It’s exactly what he wanted, but why does it feel so difficult? It feels like pressure squeezing around him– rather than on his hand. He wishes for a moment that Jonathan was there, but he has to do it alone anyway. It’ll be alone for the rest of his life anyway.

“I wanted to tell you guys that when I go to college, I might… I uh, I might start dating. Well, like, more seriously than I did in high school.” Steve isn’t sure what their parents have said about gay people and he wants to humanize and deescalate the lies built around his life. He doesn’t want to scare them.

“Well I hope so.” Mike says. “You can’t keep hanging around with us forever. I mean, we’re cool shit and everything–”

“Dammit, Mike!  _Language!”_ Steve sighs, poking his hands harshly. “Don’t make me tell Nancy.”

“She’s got a filthier mouth than me!” Mike cries. “She taught me how to correctly use the F word the other day!”

“Ooo! You’ll have to share.” Dustin says with excitement.

“Which F word. I know at least… thirty.” El asks quietly, nudging Mike with her elbow.

Steve can think of a completely different F word for the situation. And he hates that he thinks of it, but he imagines one of the kids spitting the word at him as they storm away from the table. But Nancy was right, these kids aren’t his parents. They wouldn’t use that word. They were raised different. They were raised in the middle of this chaos and death– they were empathetic and loving. He raised them; they’d have to still love him. Right?

“Guys, Steve’s trying to talk.” Lucas says, cutting through the suddenly yammering.

“I-It’s not important.”

“It is if you’re gonna buy us ice cream after.” Max counters. “That never happens. Unless it’s important. Or like, a divorce.” She laughs but Steve also knows she isn’t kidding.

“Uh, I just wanted to tell you that… that when I start dating in college. The people I date might not be who you expect.” Steve is such an idiot. Such a  _coward_. He’s afraid of fourteen year olds. Genuinely afraid.

“What do you think we expect?” Will asks, furrowing his eyebrows. “All of them to look like Nancy?”

_Well, no. But they’d **be**  Nancies._

“Well, I’m sure you expect women.” Steve spits. “A-And… They won’t be.”

The table is still. They all stare at the table and Lucas turns his head to stare at Steve, the first one to move.

“Are you telling us you’re gay? That’s it?” He says with horrifying nonchalance. His courage frightens Steve.

“I am. Yes.”

“Oh. That’s the ice cream event?” Mike asks, unfolding his hands. “That’s not really that important.”

“It is to Steve.” Will reasons, reaching a hand out toward Steve on the table.  _Oh_ , Steve thinks, that’s why he came out. Will  _knows_. He lets Will touch his hand, just like his older brother would. This time though, Steve is comforting someone else’s fear of contact rather than the reverse.

“Wait, does this mean you’re gonna have college boyfriends!” El asks with wide eyes. “Oh! They’ll look like those boys in the movies, Mike. Leather jackets and everything?”

“I mean, sure. Yeah. I could have a boyfriend with a leather jacket. Or maybe a denim one. Or like, no coat at all if he’s tough or something. I’m open to all fashion choices.”

“Except like, those weird colorful shorts or something.” Dustin says.

“I happen to think Jams are cute, thank you very much.” Steve says shooting him a look and pressing his lips together in a joking purse.

“Cute?” Mike repeats. “Oooooo! Steve thinks boys are  _cute_!”

“I’m gay, that’s what that means.” He shoots back, the words coming naturally. He never thought he’d see the day. Maybe all it took were some rambunctious kids.

“But I mean…  _cute_? That’s so sixth grade.” Max scrunches her nose and laughs.

“Unless he’s thinking of someone in particular.” Lucas points and Steve feels the thrumming excitement with none of the fear. “Who is it! Who is he!”

“No one! I’m not seeing anyone! You think I’d get a boyfriend before I told my number ones? I don’t think so.”

“When  _are_  you going to get a boyfriend, then? We want to terrorize him!” Mike groans, slapping the table jokingly. “Get a boyfriend already, Steve.  _God!”_

“Not everyone gets a girlfriend from another dimension, Mike.” Will quips, his hand still touching Steve’s. “Steve is limited to human earthlings only.”

“Are the boys on Earth cute?” El asks. Steve isn’t sure if she’s playing along or not.

“Don’t you have eyes?” Steve asks, blinking slowly. “I mean, why are you asking me?”

“None of us are gay.” Steve doesn’t catch who says it but he feels a shift in his hand. “We don’t see what you see!”

“I see the same thing as you.”

“But they’re  _older_  than us! We don’t know what’s cute when you turn nineteen!” Max reasons. “The only nineteen year old I know is… Not cute.”

“That’s cause he’s your brother.”

“I think monster is his preferred species of origin.” Will cuts in, raising an eyebrow.

“Either way. He’s not cute, right, Steve?” Max holds a hand out to Steve, ready to receive the verbal validation.

“Yeah. Not.” Steve laughs. “Mullets? Not really my speed. I mean, neither is getting my nose broken– and that shouldn’t be for you either.”

“Okay, so Steve thinks that non-mullets, jackets, and non-violent boys are cute. Okay. That’s easy. We can get you a boyfriend!” Dustin starts counting the traits on his hands. “Please reconsider the Jams though, Steve.”

“You guys haven’t even had a serious girlfriend– o-or boyfriend.” He counters, resting his arm on the back of the booth seat. He accidentally nudges the man behind them, his hand jerking away to rest in his lap. He doesn’t look back as the man looks at Steve.

“Excuse me?” Mike says with mock offense. “Uh, I’m fine thanks.”

“You’re fourteen.”

“We’re holding  _hands_.”

“I’m gonna gag.” Max teases, although Steve easily spots her hand resting against Lucas’ arm on the table. “I need ice cream.”

“Here, let me out and I’ll get you some–  _on one condition_.” Steve points at all of them sternly. “You don’t embarrass me in front of any man that is between the ages of twenty and twenty-five that may or may not be wearing colorful shorts.”

“Twenty-five?” Mike repeats. “Isn’t that a bit old for you?”

“Isn’t El a little too cool for you?” Lucas says in Steve’s defense.

“She is.” Mike says sitting up straight. “But you don’t have to  _remind_ her.”

“Oh, I know, Mike.” She isn’t even joking a little bit. Steve  _loves_  Eleven. He really does.

“Alright alright, lets get you ice cream.” Steve waves the kids out of his booth and stands. His legs still feel like they want to buckle, but with a new sense of relief. He’s got six kids around him in case he falls.

Steve walks them up to the counter, waving to Robin as he slides over the counter to start serving them. Mike wants a sundae with two spoons, Dustin wants mint chocolate chip–  _two scoops, Steve, I’m a growing boy–_ in the last waffle cone, Lucas can’t decide between two flavors so Steve manages a special twisted stack of peanut butter and rocky road scoops, and Will gets sherbet– fucking  _rainbow_  sherbet– and Steve makes sure it’s the nicest three scoops he’s ever managed. Max asks Steve to surprise her as she ushers away, trying to keep Will from dripping on his shirt. She’s grabbing napkins from passing tables and holding it around the cone as Will readjusts his grip.

She’s a lovely kid, growing up in the sunshine despite being raised in such darkness. It was kind of inspiring, Steve hated to admit. She was five years younger than him and she was already showing him the promising future of keeping his head up. He needed these kids more than they ever needed him.

“I’m sorry.” A young man approaches Steve as he walks back around the counter, Max’s cone in his hand. “I don’t mean to bother you, but I overheard you talking.”

“Oh… Sorry if we were being loud.” Steve mutters handing Max her ice cream. He notices there is no one behind them. “Oh, was it you I hit earlier? I’m sorry.”

“No! No! That’s not it at all!” His eyes are green. Steve has never seen eyes so green in his life. He’s glad talking is an excuse to look into them. “I wanted to say that I agree.”

“What?”

“Jams are cute. Although, I think ruddy converse and jeans are cuter.” Steve fights the urge to look down at his own outfit; he knows he’s wearing those two things but he wants to make sure he isn’t hallucinating.

“I– thank you.” Steve is blushing in front of a bunch of teenagers and he wants to scream.

“Do you come here often? Live close or just on vacation?” The boy asks, licking his ice cream. Steve wants to  _scream_. Why isn’t he screaming?

“I work here.”

“Oh. Good.” The boy smiles. “Guess I’ll see you again…”

“Steve. I’m Steve.”

“Theodore.” He nods and leaves Steve with a long look.

“ _Dude!”_ Dustin cries, slapping his arms and trying to bring him back to reality. “DUDE!”

“I can’t believe you all just saw that.” Steve was checked out, for the first time, in front of his babysitting gig.

“Steve’s got a boyfriend!” Max laughs, sitting back in her chair. “Didn’t take long.”

Steve nods in agreement, but there were so many months of half started conversations and awkward bail out lines that led to Steve even being able to make eye contact with Theodore. It didn’t feel like long to them because they only got to follow the positive; the journey including the negative and the regression was at least five years. But in the long run of the rest of his life, it really didn’t take long. Steve now had the rest of his life to be happy– maybe or maybe not with Theodore.

“I can’t wait for Steve to start college dating. It’s going to be so fun!”

“What if your boyfriend is like, a doctor or something? Will you date a doctor, Steve?”

“No! No! He should date a guy that can fix a car– you’re really bad at it, Steve.”

“You can’t pick his boyfriend’s skills like a Sears catalog… You should just go for someone tall! Like, taller than you. Or maybe blond too.”

“A redhead!”

“Hey, hey, hey. I’ll date who I date.” Steve laughs, sitting down in the booth again. “Lets not get ahead of ourselves.”

“Promise you’ll introduce him to us?” Will asks, twisting cone in his hand.

“Of course I will. And if you approve, it’s wedding bells for that poor sucker.”

“He  _better_  not own Jams, Steve, I swear to god.” Dustin sighs.

“So glad my sexuality doesn’t bother you but his potential fashion does.” Steve laughs. He wants to cry, if he’s being honest. This was the dumbest thing he’s ever done in his life, but it’s the most important.

“If you date someone who’s not as cool as you, I’m gonna be really upset.” Max says firmly. “You only date  _up_.”

“Guys,  _stop_.” Mike whispered, looking at El with over dramatic paranoia. “She’ll hear you.” El dips her finger in the whipped cream and slides it on Mike’s nose.

“How about this? I’ll only date someone who likes me, likes you guys, and… and…”

“Makes you happy.” Will pipes up, a dot of sherbet on his nose.

“Yeah!” They all agree, nodding their heads with their cones.

“That sounds easy enough.” Steve smiles. He places his arm around the back of the booth again, leaning into Dustin’s side. “Thanks for listening, guys. You’re pretty cool, I guess. All of you.”

“We love you, Steve.” Max says, the other Party members nodding.

 _I’m gay_  was yet to be followed by  _I love you_ for Steve. He grins and reaches his hand into the middle of the table. All the kids place their own on top and smile in return. He’s completely alright with finding a new family for college, even if it means he has to be the “adult” one. That doesn’t mean he can’t learn from his six brothers and sisters. They love him. That’s all he needs.

**Author's Note:**

> [The Rebloggable Post!](https://argylemikewheeler.tumblr.com/post/183631815640/imagine-steves-coming-out-to-the-kids-like)


End file.
